Investing in a rooftop snow management system is a critical step in protecting your property and the safety of those around it. However, simply buying snow guards and putting them on the roof isn't enough. Because the rooftop snow management industry is highly technical, small installation errors can lead to system failures, property damage, or a false sense of security. To ensure your system performs as intended, avoid these common snow guard installation mistakes.
The most frequent mistake homeowners and contractors make is installing snow guards only in isolated areas, such as directly above a doorway or a small section of the eave.
The Risk: Installing a single row of guards over a door does not account for the total snow load of the entire roof. This "patchwork" approach often leads to the guards being overloaded and yielding under the weight of the snowpack that wasn't properly retained elsewhere.
The Solution: Snow management should be distributed across all roof surfaces to safely hold the snow blanket in place. Alpine’s engineering calculations and layout recommendations are designed to distribute the load across the structural deck rather than concentrating it in one vulnerable spot.
Many people assume that because a neighbor’s pad-style setup works on their asphalt shingle roof, it will work the same way on a new metal or synthetic slate roof.
The Risk: Different roofing materials have vastly different friction coefficients. Composition shingles have natural granular friction, while materials like metal, tile, and synthetic "poly" products are nearly frictionless. A system designed for a "sticky" shingle roof will often fail to hold snow on a "slippery" synthetic roof.
The Solution: Choose a snow guard style specifically engineered for your roof material. What works for a motorcycle won't necessarily work for a car; the same is true for snow retention on different roof types.
Homeowners often prefer pad-style guards because they are less visible. However, there is a distinct technical difference between pad-style and pipe-style systems.
The Pad-Style Role: These act as deterrents. They add friction to the roof, encouraging snow to release in small, manageable chunks rather than all at once.
The Pipe-Style Role: These act as barricades. They are intended to hold the entire snow mass in place until it melts and sheds as water.
The Mistake: Expecting a pad-style system to act as a total barricade on a steep, slippery roof often leads to disappointment. For high-risk areas like points of egress, garage doors, or valleys, a pipe-style system is frequently the safer, more appropriate choice.
A common mistake is installing only a few rows of guards at the eaves and ignoring the rest of the roof.
The Risk: On roofs with long rafter lengths, steep pitches, or high ground snow loads, the weight of the snowpack can become too great for a few rows of guards to manage.
The Solution: Follow a recommended layout that may include additional "tiers" higher up the roof. These supplemental rows are necessary to minimize the effects of a "cresting" snow mass and prevent the snow blanket from "tearing" around the lower guards.
Homeowners often believe that snow guards cause icicles to form at the eaves.
The Reality: Icicles are caused by inadequate insulation, air leaks, and improper attic ventilation—not snow guards. When heat escapes the house and melts the bottom layer of snow on the roof, that water refreezes at the cold eave, creating ice dams and icicles.
The Solution: Ensure your attic is properly ventilated and insulated to maintain a cold roof surface.
While snow guards are designed to hold significant weight, they have limits based on the regional structural loads they were engineered for.
The Mistake: Assuming the guards can handle any amount of snow, including unusual drifting or extreme back-to-back storms.
The Solution: If snow accumulation exceeds the typical structural load of the roof or regional averages, it should be removed safely by a professional to prevent the guards from yielding or the structure from being compromised.
Don't guess at your snow management needs. Alpine SnowGuards provides the tools and expertise to help you avoid these costly pitfalls:
Use the Snow Guard Calculator: Get an immediate, site-specific layout and pricing based on your roof’s pitch, rafter length, and local snow load.
Work with Professionals: We recommend installation by trained professionals, such as roofing contractors or gutter specialists, to ensure a watertight and structurally sound system.
Request a Free Layout: Our team can provide custom recommendations to manage the unique architectural elements of your roof, such as dormers and valleys.
By following engineered layouts and choosing the right material for your specific roof type, you can "keep snow in its place" and protect your property for the long term.